Little Girl Lost
by abigdeihl
Summary: A routine op leads to the team finding a small child, maybe it wasn't quite as routine as they thought. The team is immediately attracted to the small child as if they've none her for years. Coulson has a hard time looking into the girls eyes, they pull him into a place he can't remember. Once the team finds out who the girl is, how will they respond? (Rated T just in case)
1. The Girl

"Are we in the right place?" Daisy pulls out her flashlight and shines it right in Fitz's eyes.

"Hey!" Fitz holds up his hand, "Yes, we're in the right place. These were the coordinates." Fitz holds up the tablet to show Daisy.

Coulson shines his flashlight around the room. In the far corner there is a small cage that looks empty. Across from them there is a door with biohazard warnings all over. To their left there's a large, practically prehistoric, computer. "Daisy, you and Fitz work on that. May and I'll head through there" pointing his flashlight at the door, "and see what we can find."

"Are you sure you should be going in there? Those signs have death and destruction written all over them." Coulson rolls his eyes at Daisy. Daisy shrugs her shoulders, but gives Coulson and May a look of caution.

"Sir?" Piper steps forward. "What should I do?"

"Sorry Piper. Yeah, you can look into that cage. Make sure we're alone." Piper nods her head and walks over to the cage. Coulson and May start out the door while Daisy and Fitz find the computer.

"How old do you think this thing is Fitz?" Daisy swipes her finger across the dust encrusted top. "I bet this might actually be older than Coulson."

"Found it!" Fitz flicked a switch on.

"You're no fun, you know that right, Fitz."

"I beat you at finding the on button didn't I? I'm loads of fun."

"Uh, guys…" Piper backed herself away from the cage. "I, uh, don't think we're alone." Piper was hit by something and began flying across the room toward the wall next to Daisy and Fitz. Daisy puts her hands up and slows Piper's trajectory. Piper hits the wall and falls to the ground. Daisy's about to run to her aid when she sees a shadow. The lights slowly began flickering on from the back of the room. Daisy and Fitz slowly make their way to the center of the room. Fitz takes a step forward in an attempt to see how Piper is, Daisy grabs his hand and makes him stop.

The lights hissed and sputtered, then finally turned on. A dingy orange glow illuminated the sickly green walls. As the lights flicked on slowly making their way to the door; Daisy and Fitz see what or who had attacked Piper.

She couldn't have been but 12 years old; a scrawny little girl dressed in a short brown dress, no shoes, and a head full of blonde curls.

Daisy lowers her hands. "Hey sweetie, my name's Daisy we're here to help you. What's your name?"

The little girls big blue eyes stare, unblinking. Then, a crackling noise; "Kill - show no mercy." The little girl runs straight for Fitz. Daisy reacted quickly and quacks her up against the far wall holding her in place. The girl squirms only making Daisy push harder.

The little girl spoke, just above a whisper; "Mom, send back up… please."

Another crackle, "You messed up - you deserve to die."

The little girl looks at Daisy with the look of utter defeat. "Fitz shoot." The girl's eyes grow big and then squeeze shut. The shot reverberates off the walls and the girl slumps over, unconscious. Daisy puts her hands down. "Simmons, we need a medic."

"On my way." Fitz walks over to Piper and helps her up off the ground as she holds her hands to her head. She gives Fitz a weak smile and they walk over to the little girl and Daisy.

XX XX

Phil decides by the layout of the base there was more territory to cover if they went right. May was close behind him, checking behind them every few feet.

"This is a weird op. Whose ideas was this?"

"Wasn't mind. Gonzalez said he needed some good eyes. Said we were the only ones advanced enough."

"So basically a suicide mission." May was angry.

They round a corner and hear the rumble of machinery.

"Either Daisy and Fitz turned the lights on or we found something new." Colson, always one for a joke. May rolls her eyes, but smiles inside.

As he finishes his thoughts the lights slowly start turning on. A speaker cracks, "Kill - show no mercy."

"That sounds promising." Coulson advances deeper into the next corridor. As they advance they pass a room, Coulson turns to look; what he sees takes his breath away. There are six medical tables each having at least two, some three, kids, dead laying on top. Coulson turns to May, "Do you trust me?"

"Of course." May needn't say more.

Coulson covers her eyes and leads them down to the next door. Coulson uncovers her eyes and they both stop when they feel the building sway underneath them. They look at each other. Coulson mouths "Daisy" and May nods.

The speaker cracks again, "You messed up,"

Coulson motions for May to go on the opposite side of the door.

"You deserve to die." At her final words Gerushah turns away and stares down the barrel of two guns. Each gun goes off. She stumbles, the guns go off again. She feels her world darkening - one more shot each. She succumbs to the darkness.

Coulson and May hear another shot, then hears Daisy on comms. After Simmons is contacted, Coulson speaks up, "Mack, send the pod down too."

"On it's way sir."

XX XX

Everyone makes their way back on the zephyr. Fitz has the young girl in his arms, looking more like a rag doll than a child. Simmons is giving orders to the interns and a small bed is brought out, the little girl placed softly on top, and wheeled into medical.

"So were we here for the girl or the mom?" Daisy looks at Coulson quizzically.

"Neither."

The team all stare dumbfoundedly at Coulson.

"We came for this." Coulson holds up a small vile of vibrant yellow fluid.

"Please tell me that won't explode." Daisy watches as Coulson puts the vile in a box and seals it.

"It shouldn't as long as we don't open it." Coulson allows the other agent to take the box.

"That's comforting." Daisy goes back to meet up with Simmons. Fitz was already there. May went up to start the plane ride home. Coulson meets up with Mack.

"What'd you see sir?" Mack looks at his superior officer from across the holo table. "I heard you ask May if she trusted you."

After a very painful, deep breath Coulson looks up to meet Mack's eyes. "It was a room with at least 25 kids, all skinny sunken in faces, dead. I couldn't let her see that. I didn't want to see that. We'll send the clean up crew in tomorrow. You'll warn them?" Coulson drops his gaze.

"Yes sir." Mack walks off toward the pod to check on the prisoner.

Not realizing that Mack had left, "I'm going to go check on our patient." Coulson looks up and realizes that he's alone, well save from some agents he never talks to who are now looking at him questioningly. He shrugs his shoulders and walks off.

XX XX

Simmons has the little girl in a hospital gown and is going over every inch of the fragile child in front of her. Daisy and Fitz are standing against the wall shifting in their nervousness. Simmons turns around and looks at her friend. "She's extremely malnourished, I don't know how she's stayed alive this long. Fitz can you go get two more bags of blood? She needs a major blood transfusion. Daisy can you go find some blankets and socks? She's got a temperature of 102, but she's freezing." After Fitz and Daisy leave the room Simmons looks down at the young girl and strokes her hair, "I don't know if you'll make it through the night little one, but I'll do everything I can. Stay strong."

"She's in good hands, Simmons." Startled Simmons turns around and sees Coulson standing at the door.

"I don't know sir, I think she might need more. I have to take some of her blood for tests, but I'm scared if I take any more she may cease fighting altogether. I don't think I can do this sir, I think you may have to call in someone more qualified." Simmons looks down at the girl and strokes her hair again.

Coulson walks up to her and puts his hand on her shoulder, "You are the most qualified doctor we have. I know this is hard, but you can do it."

Daisy and Fitz walk in together and Simmons begins drawing blood, hooking the girl up for a blood transfusion, and covering her ice cold toes with warm socks and a thick blanket. Daisy pulls up a chair next to the bed and holds the small child's hand. Fitz walks over to Simmons and places his hand on her shoulder squeezes every so gently. Simmons places her hand on Fitz's and they both sink into the couch behind them. Coulson leaves the room, to overcome with grief for this small child he doesn't even know.


	2. Blood Tells No Lies

"You can't hold me!" Gerushah bangs on the pod doors.

"Sorry sweetheart we can. Those doors are so reinforced not even Ghost Rider could get out." Mack looks at Coulson, "Right, we did upgrade didn't we?"

"Yeah, she's not going anywhere." Coulson looks at the woman, something about her makes him feel like he should say hi to an old friend. "Who are you? What's your name?"

"I am Gerushah of Asgard. You have no right to hold me in this cage." She begins banging on the doors again.

Mack turns around and looks at Coulson with wide eyes, "Are Asgardians stronger than Robbie?"

"I… I don't think so."

"Maybe we should put her back to sleep." Mack walks over to the screen to administer a high dose of sleeping gas, but before he can Coulson pulls his hand away from the screen.

"We just want to talk. Can we do that for a few minutes?"

Gerushah turns and looks at Coulson, a flicker of recognition flashes across her face before her eyes focus in on him. "What do you wish to know?"

Coulson overwhelmed with questions looks at Mack. Mack takes the hint, "Who are you working for?"

Gerushah never takes her eyes off Coulson, "I work for myself and no one else."

Mack continues, "Then why did you have the Serum X23D?"

"It was for an experiment." Coulson thinks about blinking, but doesn't as he stares into Gerushah's eyes trying to recall what he can't remember.

"What kind of experiment?" Mack says more forcefully than he expected.

Gerushah closes her eyes and looks up at Mack, "An experiment for my daughter. That is all you need to know. She is dead now, so it doesn't matter anymore. You can release me and I will go about my business."

Coulson shakes his head to get rid of the fog, "We won't be letting you go until we know what you planned on doing with the Serum."

"I was going to make my daughter drink it to make sure she was ready."

"Ready for what?" Coulson felt a protective urge over the small child already, he was ready to take on this woman, Asgardian or not.

"For her next phase of training."

"Were those other children yours as well?"

"Yes, they failed."

"What did they fail."

"They failed to fight. They failed to learn. They failed to grow. That girl was my last hope."

"Why did you want to try to blow her up?"

"I needed an heir."

"You would have killed her if you gave her that Serum."

Gerushah looks at Coulson, 'would have,' her daughter wasn't dead. "Let me see my daughter."

"We can't do that. She's fighting for her life."

Gerushah pulls her arms back and slams them on the window in front of her. Mack takes a step back, but Coulson stands still, looking at the woman with anger and pity. "You will take me to my daughter or I will kill everyone in this whole plane." She pulls out another vial of the Serum from her pocket. Again Mack takes a step back, Coulson crosses his arms calling Gerushah's bluff.

Gerushah isn't bluffing though, she holds the vial above her head and smashes it to the ground. A small rumble vibrates the plane, but other than that nothing happens. Yellow smoke fills the pod, Gerushah standing in the center.

After the smoke settles, Gerushah looks at Coulson standing arms crossed in front of her. He narrows his eyes, "Did that make you feel better? I told you, you can't get out." He walks over to the screen and pushes a few buttons emitting another gas that puts Gerushah to sleep.

XX XX

"Have you learned anything about her?" Fitz walks to Simmons who is loading a blood sample to the computer.

Simmons takes a deep breath, knowing that Fitz is either curious or trying to be helpful. All of today's activities and seeing the small child dying in front of her has made Simmons nerves fried. "I do know that she's probably closer to 16 years old. I haven't uploaded the blood samples yet to determine anything else. How is she doing?" She turns around, worry plastered across her face, her voice raises slightly; "Who's with her Leo?"

"Don't worry, Jemma, Daisy's in there." Fitz walks forward and grabs Simmon's hands. "I don't think we'll be able to pry Daisy out of that room. She's taken quite a liking to the girl already."

"Haven't we all." Loud buzzers start going off.

"JEMMA!" Daisy screams from inside the room.

Fitz and Simmons run to the room and see that the girl has started seizing. Simmons goes to a box and pulls out a syringe and some medicine. Fitz goes to the girl and places his hand on her head. The girl grabs Fitz and screams, to which Fitz hollers out in pain. Simmons rushes over and administers the contents of the syringe. Daisy is standing wide eyed, up against the wall.

"That should help her sleep. Fitz you can let go of her."

"I'm not holding her, she's holding me. Fitz grits his teeth. Simmons slowly strokes the girl's arm, she loosens her grip and Fitz grabs his left hand with his right obviously in pain.

"I… I'm sorry guys, I didn't know what to do." Daisy looks at Simmons, tears welling up in her eyes.

"She'll be fine for now Daisy, don't worry, you did fine." She grabs onto Fitz's undamaged arm and starts walking out the door. "I have to take a look at Fitz can you stay for a little while more?"

"Yeah… of course. I'm not going anywhere." Daisy sits back down and looks at the girl. She is sprawled out on the bed, her foot hanging off the bed, and the blankets falling all over the place. Daisy looks at the angelic face of the girl and finds renewed strength to care for this girl she has no idea about. She fixes the girl's legs and puts her arms down, repositioning her head carefully. She drapes the blanket back over her and then proceeds to tuck the blanket under the girl to keep her in a cocoon of warmth. Daisy sits back in the chair, leaning forward and looking at the girl. She smiles at the girl as she pushes a piece of her hair back. "I don't know if you can hear me, but I think maybe you can. I just want to let you know that we're the good guys. We won't hurt you. We, I, won't let anyone ever hurt you again. It looks like you've been through hell, but not anymore. I'll take care of you kid, don't worry." Daisy wipes a tear away that was trying to escape. She clasps both hands around the girl and squeezes her hands lightly. The girl lightly squeezes Daisy's hand back. Before she can comprehend if it actually happened she hears footsteps walking up behind her.

"How's our patient?" Coulson places his hand on Daisy's shoulder. She doesn't dare look up fearful another tear might escape.

"She had a freak out moment, not sure what it was. She squeezed onto Fitz and screamed really loud. Simmons is patching him up right now."

"And how are you doing?"

Daisy wants to pour her heart out to him, but she knows that the girl can hear her and that at any moment FitzSimmons are going to be walking through the door. "I'm fine, just a little annoyed at her mom. How is the mom anyway? Has she said anything?"

Coulson knows that Daisy is lying, but he also knows right now is not a good time to push her. "She's angry. She's also Asgardian."

At this news Daisy stands up wiping the last few tears away. "Like an actually Asgardian!"

"Yeah, like actual Asgardian. She had another vial with her of that Serum and she set it off in the pod."

Daisy's eyes grow two times their size, "And she's ok? Wait we're ok? So this Serum stuff won't cause a cataclysmic explosion?"

"One, she's fine. Two, we're fine. Fitz made a hell of a new pod. And three, yes it causes a cataclysmic explosion, but again Fitz is a genius."

As if drawn in by the mention of his name Fitz and Simmons walk into the room. "Why am I a genius this time?"

Daisy notices the cast on Fitz's arm and rushes over. Coulson places a hand on his shoulder, "You're new pod design can not only hold an Asgardian, but it can also withstand a cataclysmic explosion. How are you?" To Simmons, "Is it bad?"

"It's a pressure fracture, he'll have to wear the cast for a few weeks. He's already complained profusely so we need not bring it up again." Simmons gives Fitz a pointed stare.

"If the mother is Asgardian than it's logical to assume that her daughter is at least half Asgardian. We should probably strap her arms down for when she wakes up, I'm sure she's going to be petrified waking up in a new place. I'll go get some new straps that I've been working on. Thor wouldn't even be able to break free. They're made of…"

"While I'm sure this is fascinating, I'd like to get an update on the patient from Simmons; Fitz if you don't mind."

"Ah, yes sir. Of course. Excuse me." Fitz leaves the room.

"Simmons."

Simmons grabs a clipboard off the end of the bed. "The girl is around 16 years old. I have her blood running, it should be done shortly we can check after we're done here. She seems to have been malnourished most of her life. There are many healed wounds all over her body, signs of physical abuse and some that look like battle scars. She is extremely small for her age, but with proper vitamins and nutrition I feel as though she'll heal up quickly. I had to sedate her after the incident with Fitz because we didn't want her to hurt anyone else or herself. Her body is still extremely frail. I think tomorrow afternoon should be when we can start to allow her to wake up." She closes the clipboard and looks from Daisy to Coulson. Coulson looks as if he's about to punch something… or someone. Daisy has grabbed onto the girl's hand and is fighting back tears. "I… I'm sorry sir. Did I say something wrong?"

Coulson's face relaxes and he steps toward Simmons, "No, Jemma, you didn't do anything wrong. I don't know what it is about this girl, but I feel like I either know her or her mother and I…" He knows what he wants to say, but he hasn't yet admitted it to himself, "I have a strong urge to… to protect this child. It's as if." He stops looking from Simmons to Daisy, hoping that they'll understand.

Daisy steps forward and places a hand on his forearm, "I get it. Me too."

"Sir, I think we all have a soft spot for her. Maybe her blood work will show us more." At that Simmons retreats to the lab.

"I really do get it." Daisy squeezes his forearm.

"Thanks. Let's go see this blood work."

They walk out of the room and toward the lab. As they walk up to Simmons she stares at at them, mouth slightly open.

"Jemma, are you ok?" Daisy rushes over to her and looks at the computer. Her mouth opens and she looks up at Coulson.

"Are you going to tell me or do I need to come look?" Neither girl responds to Coulson so he walks over to the computer. The girls take a step to the side. Coulson stares at the screen slowly taking in what's before him.

The top bar is blinking with bold red words 'MATCH.' Slowly he scans his eyes down on the right is the girl, aptly named 'Jane Doe' her DNA is spiraling around. On the left in the same script as 'Jane Doe' is 'Philip Coulson.' He slowly blinks and opens his eyes again scanning the computer again and then again.

"What…" He tries to say the words he needs to, but continues scanning the computer.

"Sir, it looks as if you do know that mother. You seem to have had a child with her. That girl in there is your daughter." Simmons tentatively places a hand on Coulson's shoulder.

"Daughter!" He looks from Simmons to Daisy. They stare back not knowing what else to say. He turns to the computer once more to make sure. "I… uh. I think I need to sit down."

Simmons brings him a chair and Daisy fetches a glass of water. Coulson sits, staring straight ahead.


	3. Everyone's Awake now

The zephyr lands at base and everyone begins unloading. Coulson is still sitting in the lab staring at the computer, May walks up behind him. "What's wrong Phil?" May looks at the computer and turns to look at Coulson. "Is this accurate?" Coulson looks up at May and slightly nods his head. "Well, I guess it could be worse."

As if May's words were all he needed to hear, Coulson snaps out of his stupor. "Very funny." Looking arounds as if he'd been asleep for a few hours, "Where'd everyone go?"

"They got everyone moved to base. You going to join?" May begins walking away.

"May, this needs to stay between us… please."

"I won't talk, but you may need to warn the girls."

They both walk off the zephyr and into base. Agents are running all over the place. "Piper?!" Coulson shouts over the commotion.

Piper stops in her tracks and rushes over to May and Coulson, "Sir, the prisoner is causing quite a commotion downstairs. The interns are kind of freaking out. Agent MacKenzie's got it under control… I believe."

"If it's the prisoner downstairs that's causing commotion then why is everyone running around up here?" May gives Piper a glare indicating her desire for an answer quickly.

Piper takes the hint, "Uh, the girl woke up and after seeing Agent Fitz's wounds it got everyone a little freaked I guess."

Coulson walks over to the panel by the door and pushes a few buttons. He waits until he hears the speaker click on, "Agents it is imperative that you remain calm and behave as the highly trained agents that you are."

At his words, everyone begins walking and quietly talking to each other. Piper nods to her superior officers and leaves down the hallway.

"Maybe I should go check on the prisoner?" Coulson looks at May quizzically.

Knowing what Coulson is asking May responds, "Yeah, I'll go with you."

XX XX

"Erickson! Be careful with her. We don't want any more accidents!" Simmons walks behind the gurney. Daisy is standing on the side still clinging to the girl's hand. They walk down to medical and set up the room, the interns swarming around causing Simmons to get frustrated once again, "Did any of you see Agent Fitz's arm, that was caused by a semi-conscious little girl. If you wake her she will more than likely rip your arm off. Please quiet down and get out!" The interns quickly exit and can be heard down the hall gossiping to other agents about the girls superhuman strength.

"You sure told them, now didn't you?" Daisy laughs at Simmons.

"They're so annoying, why do we need interns anyway. I was getting on just fine without them." She begins checking the child's stats and going over her records.

The girl moans and fidgets against the restraints that Fitz fashioned to her wrists. "Jemma, I think she's waking up. What should we do?"

Simmons looks at Daisy sternly, "Calm down." She grabs another chair and sits opposite Daisy. "Hello, my name is Dr. Jemma Simmons. I've been trying to make you feel better. I know you're probably still a little groggy so I'm going to talk with you until you can open your eyes. My friend Daisy is holding your other hand and she's going to talk to you as well. We don't want you to be scared. You just let us know when you need anything." The girl slowly pulls her arms, almost in slow motion due to the grogginess of waking up. The restraints stop her arms from moving and she groans. "We have your arms in restraints right now because last time you woke up, you kind of hurt my friend Fitz. We just want to make sure you're fully awake and conscious before we take them off." Simmons talks quietly to the girl, the girl seems calm but continues pulling at the restraints.

Daisy squeezes the girls hand, "It's ok, they'll come off soon. Can you open your eyes yet?" The girl stops resisting the restraints and silently squeezes Daisy's hand back.

The girl moans quietly and slowly shakes her head. She opens one of her eyes, but then quickly closes it because of the bright lights. She licks her lips, "Lights… bright," she barely whispers.

"What honey?" Simmons leans in.

"She said the lights are too bright." Daisy motions for Simmons to turn the lights off. "Ok, the lights are off. You can try to open your eyes again." Daisy lightly pushes a piece of hair from the girl's face. The girl winces and quietly cries out. "It's alright sweetie, we aren't going to hurt you. I'm sorry if I scared you. Go ahead and open your eyes."

The girl tentatively opens her eyes one at a time. She looks up at Daisy, recognizes her as the one that almost crushed her, pulls her hand away, and screams. Her scream is loud and Daisy has to hold her hands to her ears. Simmons walks over and gently strokes the girl's arm. This seems to only slightly lessen the volume. Over the screaming Coulson's voice can barely be heard.

"Honey look at me." Simmons places her hands on either side of the girl's face. "No one's going to hurt you anymore. Daisy isn't going to hurt you. We're here to help you. Can you settle down please. Just hear what Daisy has to say." The girl looks into Simmons' eyes, stops screaming, and closes her mouth.

The girl doesn't know why she believes this doctor. She's never seen anyone outside the compound. Her mother had told her her whole life that anyone outside the compound was a threat and had to be exterminated. She knew if her mother were here she would require her to take out the unfriendlies. There was something in this doctor's eyes that told her she was telling the truth. As the doctor lowered her hands from her face she turned to the girl that had wind in her hands and nearly knocked the breath out of her.

Daisy pulled her hands from her ears when she saw the girl turning to look at her. "Hi, my names Daisy. I guess you already knew that. Simmons did just tell you. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm sorry if I did, that voice just said you were supposed to kill us and I couldn't let that happen. Sorry if I scared you." Daisy rambled on as the girl looked at her with those big blue eyes. Daisy thought the girl's eyed looked like the clearest pool she'd ever seen. As if she could jump straight into them and swim under the sun without a care in the world. Finally realizing that she was rambling Daisy stops talking and looks at Simmons for reassurance.

"Honey, can you tell us your name?" Always the thinker Simmons tries to change the subject.

The girl looks up at her quizzically. "Name?"

"What does your mom or other people call you when they want to get your attention."

The girl looks down. "Mostly they call me 'filthy rat'."

Daisy puts her hand over her mouth. Simmons gently places her hand on top of the girl's, "Well I guess we're going to have to come up with a name for you then."

The girl looks up at Simmons and then to Daisy. Daisy removes her hand and smiles, "I'm a master at coming up with new names." The girl shyly smiles back, before lowering her head and biting her lip.

XX XX

"Sir." Mack looks at Coulson, a hint of fear streaks across his face. "We don't feel comfortable letting the prisoner out of the pod."

Coulson raises his hand to stop Mack's train of thought. "Let me talk to her for a moment."

Mack calls the other agents out and they leave. "Sir, do you need me to stay here?"

May speaks up, "No Agent, you can go see if Daisy and Simmons need any help."

"Yes, ma'am." Mack leaves.

Coulson and May walk into the containment room. Gerushah is screaming and banging on the walls, fire in her eyes. Coulson hits the window, "What do you think you're going to accomplish with this little tantrum? If the serum couldn't get you out, then how do you think you'll be any stronger?"

"Let me out!"

"First, tell me something." Coulson stops talking, it's as if the words he wants to say won't come out. Gerushah stops and looks at him as if daring him to continue.

May doesn't care about Gerushah's stares, "How is it that he is your daughter's father?"

Gerushah's eyes grow incredibly large and she takes a step back. "How did you… when did… who… but I…"

"Enough!" Coulson's found his voice. "Tell me." It wasn't a question or a request it was a command. Gerushah saw the pain, curiosity, and hope flash across his face in those two words.

"It was nearly seventeen years ago. You looked miserable. I began talking with you and learning about how you felt during your last mission. How you had failed your partner and how she had retreated from you." May glares at Coulson, she stops when she sees how pained he looks. "You were my easiest. I've been searching this world to find suitable mates to help me build my army. You produced the most successful heirs." Gerushah's eyes grow big once again, realizing she had slipped.

"Heirs?! As in plural. Where are the others? How many others?" Coulson can't control his anger and feels as though he may be able to take this asgardian on. He slams his hand on the window.

Gerushah looks at him and then at May, "I meant heir. There are no more. It's just the girl. She's been the most promising. That is until you took her from me. I must complete my mission. You must give her back to me and set us free. Now."

"No. How is it that I don't remember any of this?" Coulson looks at Gerushah.

"I have certain abilities, I can make people tell me their deepest thought and I can erase certain events. I was going to take the pained event away for you, but then I saw your potential. I erased your memory of me."

"I remembered you when I saw you, I just couldn't place it."

"That can't happen. I am extremely thorough. You should have no recollection of our encounter."

"Well you're not the first person to mess with my head."

"Let me out."

"No." Coulson steps out of the room.

May looks at the woman, staring her down, willing her to try something. Gerushah sits on the bench, she looks up, fear in her eyes, "You must let me go. I have to go. None of you are safe if I am in here."

"Why?"

"The girl, she has a twin. He was more promising than she. He managed to escape. He wishes to exterminate the inhabitants of this world."

"Why?"

"Because that's what I drilled into them." May steps forward and crosses her arms. For some reason this causes Gerushah to flinch. "I wasn't planning on any of them getting out. I was going to transport them back to my land."

"Half asgardians would not be able to take on full asgardians."

"Not Asgard. That's not where I grew up." Gerushah looks down, as if she can't go on.

May changes the subject. "You wanted the girl to be killed by my teammates, why?"

"That is what she needs to hear in order to become better. She is different than her brother, she needs more…"

"More what?"

"More than I can give her."

"Coulson will give it to her and then we will find the boy, but you will remain here."

Gerushah stands up, the fire back in her eyes. "Let me free. You have no authority to hold me here."

May simply nods at her and walk out of the room. Gerushah throws her arms at the pod window. The door to the pod opens and she walks out, only to realize that she is now locked in the room.


	4. What Was Is Not What Will Be

**WARNING: This chapter will contain mentions of physical abuse and the inference of sexual abuse of a minor. Read at your own discretion.**

XX XX

Coulson was passing back and forth outside of the girl's room. The blinds were closed and he knew no one was going to come out… at least for a little while. He could here her having another attack. All he wanted to do was go inside and wrap his arms around his little girl… his daughter. He had a daughter now and that freaks him out and makes him extremely overjoyed all at the same time. The girl screams out, louder than before. He takes this as his cue and slowly steps in the room.

XX XX

Daisy fiddles with her fingers, tentatively looking up every few seconds. "What do you like?" She finally gets up enough courage to talk.

The girl tilts her head to the side, "What do you mean?" she whispers.

Daisy sits up in her seat and leans forward a little, the girl pushes back against her pillows. Daisy sits back up, "I mean is there anything you like to do or look at? If there's something you like to do or look at we could maybe pick a name similar to that. That's how I became Skye, when I was little I would sit and watch the sky… day and night, it didn't matter."

"What's in the sky?"

Simmons goes to a desk behind her and pulls up pictures of the sky while Daisy stares at the girl trying to comprehend what she's saying. Simmons walks over to them with the computer. "Look, this is the sky. Those white fluffy things are called clouds. This is the sun, it shines very bright during the day… the time when you're awake. And look at this, this is a rainbow, sometimes after it rains if you're in the right place you can see a rainbow. It has all the colors in it, it's just a trick that our eyes play on us, but I still think it's magnificent."

"It's beautiful." The girl stretches her hand, now free of the restraints. She strokes the computer screen. "What does the sun feel like?"

"It feels like a warm hug."

The girl tilts her head, "Hug?" she questions.

"I guess maybe we can just say it feels like you're warm all over."

Simmons clicks to the next picture. It is of the night sky. The girls eyes grow big and she looks at the picture waiting for an explanation.

Simmons takes the hint, "This is what the sky looks like at night. This is the moon, it's just a big rock that reflects the sun's light on us. These are the stars, there are so many no one can calculate all of them… however if you're a mathematician, you've tried…" The girl doesn't listen to Simmons she's touching the stars tracing her finger across each one. Simmons clicks on another picture of the night sky. "This is called a constellation, it's like a picture that comes out from drawing lines connecting stars."

Daisy looks at the girl, "Did you know that the sun is a star too?" That was basically as much knowledge as Daisy could remember from her few years in school.

"I like the stars."

"Ok well, let me think of some names that have to do with stars and then you can pick one you like." Daisy pulls out her phone, a notebook and a pencil. She starts jotting down some names.

Fitz walks into the room cautiously. "Hey girls." He stays at the door.

The girl looks up at the sudden interruption. She pulls her knees into herself and covers her ears. She begins screaming.

Daisy pulls her hands up to her ears, unable to do anything. Simmons moves the computer and goes to console the girl. When she moves the computer, the screen goes black. The girl notices and screams even louder. Daisy falls on the floor, gripping her ears even harder. Fitz looks at Simmons and points to the computer. Coulson walks into the room and takes in the scene before him. He walks over to the girl while Simmons walks to the computer.

Coulson sits in the chair at the side of the bed, "Hey, there look at me. It's ok. No one is going to hurt you." The girl looks at him, lowering her screams slightly.

The screams lessen immensely and Daisy is able to stand up and retreat back to her chair. She grabs the girl's hand. "Hey, kiddo do you want to hear some of the names I've found."

The girl looks at Daisy now, she nods her head just as Simmons is wheeling the computer back over. The girl takes a deep breath and stops screaming all together.

Daisy picks up her notebook, "Astra, Cari, Danica, Estella."

The girl and Coulson both shake their heads.

Daisy continues, "Miriyan, Seren, Stella, Stelle, Tarika."

"Wait." Coulson looks at the girl and then at Daisy. "Stella, her name is Stella."

The girl looks at him and then slowly smiles. "Yeah, I like that."

"Stella," Coulson grabs her hand and pats the top lovingly, "I need to tell you something and I don't know how you're going to take it."

Stella looks down at the restraints and points at them with her other hand.

"No, honey, I don't think we'll need them. I just want you to be prepared. Do you know what a father is?"

Fitz gasps. Everyone looks over at him, "Sorry, I… uh… just hit my arm on the table." He holds up his hand and waves it at them. Daisy rolls her eyes at him, Simmons looks pointedly at him as if warning him to keep quiet. Coulson looks back at Stella.

"Stella, do you know what a father is?"

"Mother said I didn't need to know. The boy asked one time. He was smarter than me. He knew everything."

"Well, it takes a father and a mother to make a baby. I… well, I mean, your mother she found a lot of men to help her to make children, but none of them remember."

"She does that. She takes your memories away. She doesn't take mine away."

Coulson wants to engulf his little girl in his arms and never let her go. He sees the pain in her eyes and feels her hand tighten under his.

Simmons feels the need to help, "Inside your blood there are things called markers and this helps us to determine many things. This is how we knew that you were half asgardian. It's also how we found out who your father was."

Coulson gives Simmons a thankful nod. Stella looks at everyone in the room confused, but also intrigued. From what little she's learned she knows that a father has to be a boy and that boys have short hair. She decides that Daisy and Simmons can't be her father, they have longer hair. She looks at Fitz and this new man that just entered.

"Who… who is my father?" She looks at Coulson, but then looks down. She pulls her hand back and covers her face. She's not supposed to ask questions. She knows better. She waits knowing that the blow will come. Instead of feeling the blow she feels a soothing hand on the top of her arm, it makes it's way to her hand, and pulls her hand away from her face. She looks up again at Coulson.

"Stella, you can ask me anything. Whenever you have a question you just ask. We won't hurt you." Coulson tries to look as loving and calm as he can, but the fire and hatred toward Gerushah is trying to escape. "Honey, I'm your father and I will never let anything bad happen to you ever again."

Stella looks at him, she has so many questions swarming in her head, but the only thing that comes out is, "Uh… what should I call you?"

Everyone cracks a smile and starts laughing quietly. Coulson grabs Stella's other hand, "Stella, you can call me whatever you want. Some people call their father, 'Dad,' my real name is 'Phil Coulson,' a lot of people call me Coulson."

"I call him AC." Daisy chimes in.

"You can decide now or you can wait and decide later. It's nothing to worry over." Coulson slowly gets up and puts his hands lightly on Stella's face, "I love you Stella, I will always be here for you." He kisses her forehead. As he goes to pull back, Stella grabs onto his shoulders and squeezes. Coulson pulls her into a hug, she starts crying. "Oh, sweetie. It's ok. I'm here now." He uses one of his hands to stroke her hair.

Daisy can't stand Stella's tears and she gets up in the bed. She wraps her arms around Stella and Coulson. "You're safe here Stella, we'll all keep you safe."

Simmons grabs one of Stella's hand. Fitz places his hand on Simmons's shoulder, still a little worried to touch Stella.

They stay like that for a while. May walks in and looks at the mound of people on the bed. She represses a smile and quietly clears her throat. Simmons and Fitz are the first to turn around.

"Agent May." Simmons acknowledges her.

Daisy slowly releases Stella and slides off the bed, wiping tears that tried to escape. Coulson stands up. Stella grabs Coulson's hand before he can fully free himself from her. Coulson strokes her head and kisses the top of her head.

"How is everyone?"

Fitz waves his arm, "Just a little sore, I'll be better in a few days. No worries."

Simmons and Daisy shrug.

Coulson holds up Stella's hand, "May, I'd like you to meet my daughter. This is Stella."

May walks slowly toward Stella and Coulson. Stella tenses, but doesn't retreat backwards. May extends her hand, "It's nice to meet you Stella."

Stella looks confused. Coulson notices and guides her hand toward May's. May shakes her hand and then lets it go. Coulson smiles inside because even though he's missed most of her life, at least he still has a little he can teach her.

XX XX

 _The orange lights click on and Stella stands up. The door unlocks and she steps outside. Her mother stands in front of her, looking her up and down._

" _Today you will be training with 43. You will obey every command. Is that understood."_

 _Stella shakes her head yes. She doesn't have time to brace herself. Her mother brings her strong, asgardian hand back and slaps her across the face. She falls to the ground a few feet away. As quickly as she can she gets back up and walks over to her mother. She doesn't look up, but responds, "Yes, ma'am."_

" _That's better." Her mother turns toward 43, "Do not go easy on her, the 17 went to easy yesterday… and we both know what happens when you go easy."_

" _Ma'am." 43 salutes her mother._

 _Her mother leaves and now she is left with 43… alone._

" _We will be working on your longevity today. Let's go to the track."_

 _Stella looks up at 43, he is tall and broad. He looks like he could pick up her cage and throw it all the way to the track. His eyes are a dark brown, so dark Stella isn't sure if they are brown or black. She knows that her mother can control anyone, maybe this is a side effect. Before she can finish her thought of how he looks, 43 grabs her arm. With his free hand he grabs his baton from its place on his leg. Stella gasps for breath and tries to respond, but it's too late. 43 begins to hit her back, bottom, and legs with the baton. She tries to stifle her tears, but she knows she's no good at that. She lets them fall freely hoping that she won't make any noise._

" _When I give you a command, you are to respond appropriately. Or have you forgotten in the last 10 seconds since your mother left?" He stops hitting her and releases her arm, "Let's go to the track."_

 _Stella looks at him, "Yes, sir." She looks back down._

 _43 grabs her arm and pulls her toward the door._

She doesn't want to go through the door, she knows what happens after. Stella tries to wake herself up. "No!" She hears herself scream out. Then, she feels those hands, the tender hands, the hands of her father.

"It's ok Stella. It's just a dream. They can't hurt you. I'm right here. I won't let them get you."

Stella tries to open her eyes, she knows if she goes to sleep now she'll be right back with 43. "Please, help me."

"I'm here. I'm right next to you. You're safe. It's ok Stella."

She knows he's right, but she can't allow herself to open her eyes and she drifts back to sleep.

" _I have a better idea. Why don't we have a lesson in obedience. You can't seem to remember how to be obedient for more than 10 seconds so now we'll put you to the test."_

 _Stella looks at her feet, "Yes sir." She knows what's coming, but she also knows she can't fight him or anyone else for that matter._

 _They walk into another room, it's small and probably used for storage. 43 pushes Stella into the room. She doesn't fall, but knows that it's only a matter of time. She gracefully glides to the floor._

" _Did I tell you to get on the ground?"_

 _Stella stands up, "No sir."_

" _Take that ugly dress off, you're such a filthy rat. No one ever teach you how to properly clean yourself?"_

 _Stella begins taking her dress off, not sure of how to respond to the questions. She gets the dress up to her head when she feels 43 grab her arm and begin hitting her again with the baton. She hates that baton, but she knows better than to move. Her hands stay above her head, her dress in her face._

 _43 lets her go, "You don't even know how good you have it. I'm doing you a service you know. I'm here to help you. Most others would have you run until you pass out, but I'm being kind to you. What do you say when someone is being kind to you filthy rat? What do you say?"_

" _Thank you, sir." Stella has her dress off and is looking down at her feet again._

 _43 grabs her hair and pushes her down to the ground. She doesn't make a sound. He lays her down on her back and straddles on top of her._

"Noooo! Don't!" Stella sits up in her bed, eyes wide open. She looks around the room, her eyes lock with Coulson's.

Coulson gets out of his chair and stands next to Stella. He wraps his arms around her and lightly kisses the top of her head, "It's ok Stella, you're safe."

"Please… please don't make me sleep." She pulls her knees up and wraps her arms around herself.

"Can I sit on the bed with you sweetie?" Coulson isn't sure what Stella is comfortable with, he want's to make sure she feels safe at all times.

Stella looks up at him, "You're…. You're asking me permission?"

"Yes, Stella. I want to make sure that you feel safe. I don't want to scare you. Is it ok if I sit next to you on the bed?"

Stella wants to say yes because she feels safe with him… with her father, but she also wants to say no because that's how it starts. They're nice to you and want you to feel comfortable and then they hurt you. He wouldn't hurt her though, for some reason she knew without a doubt that her father would never hurt her, not like those other men. This man was different, this man was her father. "Yes, it's ok."

Stella scoots over and Coulson sits next to her. He wraps his arms around her once again. She stiffens for a second, but then melts into him. She begins to cry again.

Coulson squeezes her a little tighter, "I'm here for you Stella, I won't let anyone hurt you again. If you want to tell me what happened I'll be here to listen. If you don't want to talk, that's fine too. I'll be here for you no matter what."

"They hurt me." Stella wants to spill her nightmares out and push them away. She wants her father to take all the hurt away. She wants to be in his arms wrapped up tight forever. "They always hurt me… everywhere."

"I'm sorry sweetie, I'm sorry I didn't know. I'm sorry I couldn't save you. I'm here now. I'll make everything better. I promise." Coulson pulled Stella onto his lap and wrapped a blanket around her. "I won't let the bad dreams get you. I'll stay with you always."

"Always?"

"Always Stella. Always."

Stella feels herself untense, even though she wasn't extremely tense, she feels even more secure now. This time when sleep begins she knows they won't be there waiting for her. She's right. This time there's only sky. She walks in between day and night. She's happy. She's safe.

Coulson watches as his daughter falls asleep. He sees the slight upturn of her lips and knows that she's not scared anymore. He continues holding her, but grabs his phone and begins writing a list. A list of all the things he's going to do to Gerushah and whoever else hurt his little girl.


	5. Time For Reinforcements

**WARNING: Mention of physical abuse to a minor. Read at your discretion.**

Coulson lightly lays Stella next to Daisy. Stella stirs for a moment, but then feels Daisy's arms and rolls into her. "I'll be right back, Stella. I have to go do a few things. Daisy's here with you. She'll keep you safe." With that Coulson gives Stella a kiss and walks out of the room.

XX XX

"Sir, what exactly are you asking me to do? Wouldn't Daisy be better suited to do this sort of thing?" Fitz looks at Coulson from across the room.

"Fitz, Daisy is in with Stella right now. For one reason or another Stella seems content to be with only myself or Daisy. I need to make sure this is handled and someone has to be with Stella at all times. Therefore, this leaves you. I need you to contact them. Now." Coulson stands up and walks toward Fitz.

Fitz puts his head down and start typing away at the computer in front of him. "I understand sir."

Coulson puts his hand on Fitz's shoulder. "How long will it be before they're here?"

"As soon as I send the message, we'll just have to wait for a response. A quinjet is already up in the air ready to go any direction."

"Thanks Fitz." Coulson walks out of the room as Fitz finishes sending the message.

XX XX

"What?!"

"I guess we should give them a call."

"It must be serious if they're calling us."

"It's probably not that serious. You know they've wanted us back since we left. They just have an excuse and probably a different director."

"You call then."

XX XX

The quinjet speeds across the horizon, lightly landing in a field somewhere near the Great Smoky Mountains. The hanger door pushes back the grass and two agents stand with amused faces staring at Mack. Mack struts down the ramp and embraces his agents with a bone crushing hug.

"Hey Mack, it's nice to see you too."

"Bloody hell, mate, you're crushing my ribs."

"It's nice to see you two too. Come on everyone's back at base. No one except Fitz and Coulson know you're back."

"Are we back, Mack?"

"You know Coulson couldn't keep the best agent out for good… and you're all right too, I guess."

"Ha. Very funny. Let's go!"

The hanger door closes and the three agents buckle up for the short flight.

XX XX

Coulson relieves Daisy from sitting with Stella and tells her to wait by the front doors, he's expecting someone.

Daisy walks to the front doors and stands with one foot up against the wall. She's slightly excited, but she decides that this is probably just some cruel joke. It's probably just Talbot. As her thoughts lead to how she's going to antagonize Talbot when he returns the doors open. At first Daisy doesn't know what she's looking at, she rubs her eyes, and after realizing who she's looking at she gasps, "Bobbi!" Daisy runs full force toward Bobbi as Simmons peaks out from the lab.

"Hey there Daisy. How's it going?" Bobbie embraces Daisy and only slightly gets knocked backward, Mack lends a helping hand to stabilize her.

Simmons runs out of the lab, "Bobbi! Is that really you?" She runs toward Bobbi and clings to her neck.

"And what am I chopped liver?" Hunter looks dejected, with a hint of sarcasm in his eyes.

Fitz walks up to Hunter and extends his hand, "It's good to have you back Hunter."

Hunter grabs Fitz's hand and pulls him into a hug.

"Alright ladies, I think it's time to give Agent Morse some air." May stands with a small smirk on her face holding out two badges for the returning agents.

Daisy and Simmons release themselves from Bobbi. Hunter takes the badges and hands one to Bobbi.

"Agent Morse and Hunter go ahead and get settled, then meet us in Coulson's office. We have a lot to catch you up on. 15 minutes." May begins to walk away, but turns around and adds, "It's nice to see you… both."

"Nice to see you too Agent May." Bobbi smiles brightly at May.

"Glad to be back. It was getting pretty boring out there in the real world… doing nothing." Hunter receives an elbow to his spleen for that comment, but he chuckles nonetheless.

The six agents begin walking down the hallway. Daisy and Simmons swarming Bobbi with hugs and questions. Hunter rolls his eyes at the woman and falls back with Mack and Fitz who have the bags. "So, anything new?" he asks, hoping one of them will spill the beans so he doesn't have to be taken off guard when they go to Coulson's office.

"Just the usual. People doing whatever they want and not expecting there to be consequences." Mack laughs at the look on Hunter's face. "Oh and Coulson's got a daughter."

Hunter stops walking, "Wait what?"

At this the three woman stop and turn around.

Simmons steps forward, "Agent Mackenzie, you weren't supposed to tell them about Stella. That was for Director Coulson and Agent May to discuss with them."

"Hey, he was just going to continue to annoy me with questions until I told him. I figured I'd get it out of the way." Mack shrugs and starts walking into Bobbi and Hunter's room.

"Coulson's got a kid. Not as surprising as I thought it would be. I mean he's basically a dad all the time anyway." Bobbi sits on the bed as Daisy and Simmons sit on either side of her. "I thought he'd adopt us all before long." They all laugh knowing exactly what she means. Coulson has always loved each of them and protected them, even when they didn't feel like they needed him.

XX XX

"Phil, I need to tell you something before the team gets here. I need you to process this a little quicker than you did with learning about Stella."

Coulson takes a deep breath, "She's still my daughter right?" His eyes stare back at May with such fierceness, it's as if he's trying to control what she says.

"Of course she's your daughter." Coulson takes a deep breath and sits in his chair, May continues. "Phil, Stella is a twin."

Coulson's face lights up like a child looking at their wrapped presents on Christmas morning. Just as quickly as he got excited he also gets extremely worried, "They… they weren't among those dead children were they?"

"No, he escape…"

Before she could finish Coulson interrupts, "A son? I have a son and a daughter? That's amazing."

"It's rather amazing as you put it, but there's more and this is the part I need you to process." Coulson shakes his head. "Your son… and your daughter, I guess, were trained to annihilate anyone outside that building. Gerushah told me that she was going to transport the kids to another planet where she grew up. Your son escaped before she was done training him and now he's the threat we need to stop." May almost spits out the last few words, hoping Coulson is able to see the danger in the situation. She knows he's going to want to protect this boy, but she really needs him to see how much of a threat he is. "Gerushah said that the boy was more promising than Stella. That means he's dangerous, Phil. Phil, are you listening to me?"

"Yeah, I'm listening to my friend tell me that I need to take out my son."

"That's not what I said."

"Isn't it."

They stand staring at each other. A small knock draws them away from their current fight.

"Uh, they told me…" Stella looks down at her feet. She has on an oversized S.H.I.E.L.D. t-shirt and gray shorts, her feet have socks on… even though she wasn't sure about them. One of the agents had helped her bathe and now her blonde hair was even lighter which made her blue eyes pop all the more. Her curls lay softly on either of her shoulders.

Coulson steps forward, "It's ok Stella. You're supposed to be here, I asked them to bring you up. I want you to know what we're doing." He shoots a warning glare at May.

May knows the look means she should keep her thoughts about the boy to herself.

After Coulson brings Stella to the couch the team enters. Stella sees all the new faces and she curls up into a ball and extends one of her hands to Coulson. He takes her hand and wraps his other arm around her. He whispers to her, "You already know Daisy, Simmons, and Fitz. That big guy is Mack, Daisy will tell you that he's a big teddy bear and I happen to agree." Stella gives him a confused look, but he continues, "The other man there is Hunter and that woman is his wife, Bobbi. They're my very good friends. I asked them to come here to help us keep you safe."

Bobbi always the intuitive spy looks at the girl's current body language and motions for the guys to have a seat at the table. She walks carefully toward Stella and kneels down a few feet from her. "Hey, I heard from my friends that you are a very special girl. You're name is Stella right?"

Stella shocked that anyone so tall and muscular could talk so nicely to her and also that someone actually knew her name nods her head.

"My names Bobbi and I'm very glad to meet you." Bobbi holds her hand out to Stella

Excited that she knows what to do Stella pulls her hand out and extends it to Bobbi to shake. "Hi" she barely whispers.

Bobbi smiles, "Hi, Stella."

Everyone takes a seat. Daisy sits down next to Stella. Stella wraps her arm around Daisy's.

"Well I figured this wouldn't be kept quiet for long. So who told?"

The team all point to Mack who looks away from Coulson's staring eyes. "It was Hunter's fault sir. He kept badgering me for intel"

"I distinctly remember asking one time, that's far from badgering. Don't throw me under the bus you put in motion."

"It doesn't really matter now, now does it. Just so you all know anything spoken in this room will stay in this room until otherwise ordered. Is that clear."

Basically in unison the team speaks, "Yes sir."

During the briefing Stella sits and looks at everyone in the room. She doesn't listen to what her father says, but marvels that he commands so much respect without even once hitting a member of his team. She knows he's the boss just by the way everyone looks at him and refers to him as "sir." She looks at all the members of the team and tries to decide if they're friendly or not. For some reason she trusts Daisy, even though she tried to kill her. She trusts Simmons because she's helped her get better. Fitz is alright, even though he shot her, but he explained that he just made her go to sleep so he wasn't too bad. Agent May was quiet, which Stella liked. Stella thought that May looked intimidating, but was actually a softy underneath… like 17, the one woman who had shown her kindness back at the compound. The three new people looked intimidating at first, but she can't help but trust Bobbi. Bobbi was unlike anyone she'd ever met. Bobbie had so much strength and authority, but knelt down and spoke kindly to her. Stella was sure Bobbi could be trusted. The other two men were the wild cards. Stella decided she'd keep her distance until she knew for sure.

"Stella, honey." Coulson lightly nudges his daughter.

Stella looks down and begins fiddling with her shirt hem. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention." She stands up and turns around so her back is toward Coulson.

"Sweetie, what are you doing?" He stands up and turns Stella toward him. He puts his finger under her chin and lifts her head. "Stella, what's wrong?"

Standing up straight at attention, Stella takes a deep breath and with a voice louder than any of them have heard, "One must always be at attention. If one forgets to listen, one is punished." At this she turns back around.

Everyone in the room stops breathing, no one moves. After a moment Coulson tenderly puts his hands on Stella's arms and turns her around, "You're not there anymore Stella. You are not going to be punished like that ever again. You never have to listen to them or their rules ever again. You're safe here."

Stella looks up into her father's eyes and sees something she's never seen before. It's like a hug, but more. She doesn't know what it is, but all she wants to do is look at them forever.

"Stella, I love you. I will always be here to protect you. This whole team will keep you safe. Do you believe me?"

Love. That's what's in his eyes. It's love and for the first time in her life Stella feels love. It starts in her chest and makes its way through her body finally ending as a lump in her throat. "I… I believe you." She jumps forward and hugs her dad. After a moment she pulls away and looks up at Coulson. "Dad?"

Joy flutters through his heart as Coulson looks at his daughter, "Yes, Stella."

"I think I love you too."

At this exclamation of adorable cuteness the whole team lets out a big breath and lightly chuckles.

"That's what you're supposed to say right." Blushing and slightly confused Stella looks to her father for affirmation.

"It's exactly what you're supposed to say." Coulson gives Stella another hug and kisses the top of her head. "Stella, I have a question for you."

Stella pulls out of the hug and sits back on the couch.

"Did you know that you have a twin brother?"

Stella thinks back to her time at the compound, there were many children there. She doesn't know what a twin is, but she knows that the boys at the compound were her brothers and the girls were her sisters. The guards and her mother would always compare them. There was one boy that looked an awful lot like her. They were never allowed to talk to each other. They would stare at each other and it had always felt like he was supposed to be with her. "I think I remember a boy. I had many brothers and sisters. Most of them died from the gas, but I didn't. The boy wasn't in there with us. I haven't seen him in a while."

"Do you know how long ago it was that you saw him?" Daisy looks at Stella expectantly.

"The nasty tasting gas was three sleeps before I came here and I saw him two sleeps before that." Stella looks back at Daisy.

Daisy winks at her, "Six days about. We can probably calculate how far he could have gotten by foot or by vehicle, if he even knew how to drive. We can split up into a few groups and ask some people if they saw anything."

Everyone nods in agreement, except May. "By the way Gerushah talked about him, he's probably leveled a few towns. It shouldn't be hard to find his location."

"Our first priority is to find him. The second is to save him. Is that understood." The last three words are extremely forceful and aimed directly at May.

"Yes sir." most everyone mumbles.

"Agent May?"

May looks Coulson square in the eyes, willing him to push her. Out of the corner of her eye she sees Stella and her exterior chips away, "Yes sir."


	6. The Plan

**WARNING: Mention of physical/sexual abuse of a minor. Read at your own discretion.**

XX XX

"So, how much faith do you have in those restraints?" Simmons looks at Fitz while he scans the restraints.

"A lot." Fitz doesn't look up.

Daisy walks into the lab with Stella holding onto her hand. Stella now has on jeans and a more fitted shirt, her hair is half pulled back and she's wearing shoes. She's walking a little like someone stuck in mud, pulling their feet up high to get away. Shoes are something new to Stella. Fitz and Simmons look up at the sound of a flop of Stella's foot. Simmons walks up to the two women.

"Hey Stella, you look very nice. How are you feeling?"

Stella blushes and looks up at Simmons, "My stomach hurts a little from lunch, but I think I'm good."

"It'll hurt a little for the next couple of days, your body needs some time to get used to eating food regularly. How's your head?"

"It doesn't hurt anymore. The lights aren't so bright anymore. Thank you."

"I think your eyes just got used to them. I'm glad you're doing so well. Let me know if you need anything. Ok?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Simmons smiles at Stella. Daisy walks to Fitz and examines his work.

"Do you know what you're looking at Daisy?" Fitz asks with a hint of smugness.

"Of course I don't, but I wanted to see if Stella could handle a little time without me. She's doing good talking to Simmons… by herself."

"Why do you think she's latched onto you? You did try to kill her."

Daisy smacks Fitz's arm. "Hey, I did not… and I don't know. Why do you think she's latched onto me?"

"Probably because she thinks you're her sister."

"What?"

"You and Coulson are basically father-daughter. No one says it out loud, but you know it's kind of an unspoken truth."

"That's crazy."

Stella and Simmons walk over to Daisy and Fitz.

Stella looks at the restraints and blanches, "D… do I have to wear those again?"

Daisy hugs Stella, "Of course not. Those are for your brother when we save him. Remember how scared you were when you first came here. If we hadn't of put those on your arms you probably would have gotten out and then we wouldn't be able to keep you safe." Noticing Stella's uneasy face Daisy adds, "It's ok, we'll take them off as soon as he sees that we're here to help him; just like we did with you."

Stella hugs Daisy back, "When will we find him?"

Simmons speaks up this time, "Agent Morse, Hunter, and Mack are tracking your brother, hoping they can find him close by. Agent May and your dad are talking with your mom to find out any information they can about your brother."

"NO! They can't be near her! They can't…" Stella takes off running, she passes Mack - almost pushing him over.

XX XX

"Is this cage really necessary?" Gerushah paces back and forth as May stands, arms crossed, staring unresponsive.

Coulson walks into the pod next to May, "Gerushah, you know as well as we that we can't let you out. If we let you out you'll try to destroy everyone on this base."

"I will not. You know nothing of my intentions. I only came to Midgard for my own safety. I do not want anything to harm this world. I only needed its protection." Gerushah is almost pleading at this point. "I need to be released, I need to protect this world. Please."

"Stop begging. I know about our son."

"Then you know that I must find him and stop him before he hurts all the people of this world. You have no idea of his strength and persistence."

"No, you're right I don't… and you know why? Because you decided to keep them from me. Now it's my turn. I'm keeping them from you." Just as he begins to get red faced, May places a hand on his arm, and steps forward.

"We need to know everything about your son. How can we stop him?" Coulson's hand clenches and May strokes his arm, "We just want to keep him safe."

"You will not be able to stop him. He is unstoppable."

"We have Daisy, remember the girl who was able to hold your daughter up against the wall without being near her."

"My son is not as weak."

"No one is as strong as Daisy's powers." May knew this was true and she was glad that Daisy wasn't here to hear her praising her powers. "What exactly is your son trying to accomplish?"

Gerushah lowers her head, slowly she raises it up to look at Coulson, "Total annihilation."

"Does he really think he can take on the whole world?" May senses Coulson is again about to blow, so she tries to take some control back.

Gerushah doesn't stop looking at Coulson, "He has no other option, this is all he has ever known. His entire childhood was geared toward him accomplishing this one task."

"How could…" As Coulson begins to bubble over with hatred, Stella runs in an bumps into him.

Stella looks up at Coulson and then toward May. Her eyes finally fall on her mother, behind the glass, but still just as intimidating. She begins to take in smaller and smaller breaths, hoping to become invisible. She knows what's going to happen and she doesn't want it to come. Her mother takes a step forward.

"What are you doing here?" Coulson grabs Stella's shoulders and turns her toward himself. "Where is Daisy?"

Stella looks down, "I ran. You can't… you can't be here."

"Stella, look at me. Please." Stella looks up at him. "Why can't we be here?"

"She's going to hurt you." Stella points at her mother. She also turns her head to catch a glimpse of her mother and is startled to see her mother smirking.

Gerushah is extremely elated at her now changing fate. She knows her daughter's training was excruciating and that if life had been more fair her daughter would have grown up in a loving home, but that just wasn't so. She knew her daughter would have no choice but to listen to her. "You will incapacitate these two and let me out of this cage, right now!"

Stella knew she should listen, but she didn't want to hurt her father or Agent May. She steps back and pushes up against the wall.

"Are you disobeying? You know better. Do as I say right now or your punishment will be more severe."

Mack enters and grabs Stella in his arms. "Come on squirt, we're going to get you out of here. You're safe. Don't worry." He continued whispering in her ear until they reach Daisy's room. He puts her down and sits on the bed. She stares at him, tears pouring out of her eyes. She doesn't wipe them away. He holds both of her hands in his. "Hey squirt, she can't hurt you or your dad or anyone else while she's inside that cage. She can't get out. I promise. You are safe from her and so is everyone else." Mack had seen Daisy, Simmons, and Fitz running after Stella and stopped them to ask what had happened. It had only taken a few moments for him to understand why Stella was so scared. He told the three agents to go back to the lab and wait for them and ran off toward the holding rooms.

"I...I…" Stella tried to tell Mack everything, but she couldn't say a thing. She saw this giant of man with muscles bigger than her entire body and she knew what he wanted from her. She started taking her shoes off and put her hands to the buttons on her pants. They were tricky, she had needed Daisy to help her button them before. Her hands were shaking and she knew that she needed to move quickly.

Mack looked at Stella curiously as she took her shoes off and then fumbled with her button. He remembered to early in the day when she had thought that Coulson was going to beat her for not paying attention. He watched for another second as he saw her choke back tears and get frustrated with her button. He didn't want to scare her so he knelt down and held his hands out to her. "Stella, look at me. Please look at me squirt."

Stella stops fumbling with her button, she knows Mack's not mad. She throws her hands to the side, slapping her legs from the force.

"Squirt, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm not like those men from where you came from. Look at me please." Mack tries to keep his hands steady, he doesn't want to move until Stella is safe inside his arms.

"I… I'm sorry." Stella looks up at Mack and sees his eyes swimming with compassion. She runs toward him and is enveloped in a hug. She finally lets herself succumb to the tears that had been building since she heard her dad was near her mom.

Mack holds her and whispers, "I've got you. I won't let anything happen. Don't worry, we'll always keep you safe."

XX XX

"She didn't listen to me!" Gerushah slams her hand on the window.

Coulson is mad at Gerushah, worried about Stella, but there's something in him he doesn't understand. He thinks of Stella and how she reacted, she hadn't obeyed Gerushah, she stepped back. She wasn't going to listen, she didn't want to listen. He thought of their short time together and how in her first day it would have been totally different. He was proud, he was proud of how much his daughter had grown in only three days. He was proud of himself for being able to love so fiercely within those three days. He was proud of his team for keeping his daughter safe. He was proud. He looks at Gerushah and smirks, "You don't have control over her any more, and once we find my son you won't have control over him either."

Gerushah slams her hand on the window again. Coulson and May walk out of the pod.

May turns to Coulson, "What happened? With you I mean. A minute ago you were ready to bang through that glass and take her on, now you're all calm. What happened?" May was utterly dumbfounded.

"She doesn't control Stella anymore. That means that there's hope for my son. We will find him and we will save him. I know you don't think we'll be able to, but I know we can. I know without a doubt that I'll be able to save him, you have to believe me Melinda, you have to trust that I know what's right. Not because I'm his father or because I'm the director, but because it's what's right. It's what's going to happen. We will save him."

May holds her hand up, "Stop rambling Phil. I believe you. I didn't, but you're right. You will save him. I have no doubt."

Coulson smirked at May, "You know, you're not as hard nosed as everyone thinks." He gives her a shove. She suppresses a laugh, but smiles at him.

XX XX

Mack walks with Stella in his arms, she had fallen asleep and he didn't want to leave her alone.

Daisy runs toward them, worried, "What happened?"

"She's tired. She's fine, don't worry. I didn't want her to be by herself. She's light as a feather, I figured I could carry her."

Daisy rubs Stella's back and smiles at Mack. He's definitely a big teddy bear. Bobbi and Hunter walk in and see Stella in Mack's arms.

"Is she alright?" Bobbi walks over to them and places her hand on Stella's head.

"She's fine, just a little tired." Mack chuckles, he knows he'll have to tell them the real story, but for now he's going to have to repeat himself. Well, at least once more.

As if on cue, Coulson and May walk in. Coulson runs to Mack and grabs the girl from his arms. "Is she alright? What happened? You didn't knock her out did you?" He looks over his sleeping daughter carefully for any bumps or bruises.

Mack takes a step back and holds his hands up, "I don't knock kids out, that's Fitz's thing."

"Hey!"

"She tired herself out from crying. She's fine. Just needs a nap I guess."

Coulson takes a deep breath, "Thanks Mack. Sorry about thinking you'd knocked her out. I was just worried."

"You're her dad, you're supposed to be worried." Mack slaps Coulson's back and strokes a piece of Stella's hair back away from her face.

"Uh, sorry to be the buzz kill, but we found your boy." Hunter steps awkwardly from foot to foot, rubbing the back of his head.

"He's about 50 miles south of the building where you found Stella." Bobbi slaps Hunter on the back of the head.

"Wow, he's moved fast. We should have a team go another ten miles south, just in case. The other team can look at the last spot." Daisy clicks on her tablet and pulls up the map that Bobbi, Hunter, and Mack had been working on.

"Is everyone clear on what we're to do? Fitz has made restraints that will hold the boy. We aren't going to hurt him any more, he's been hurt his whole life, we don't need to add to it." Everyone nods, "Alright, Stella's going to stay on the bus with Simmons. Fitz you're going to be on coms. The first one to see the boy should shoot him with a tracker, it won't hurt him. Right Fitz."

Fitz nods, "Yes sir."

"After we have a tracker on him then we'll be able to keep him and others safe. Mack and Hunter you need to get as many people as you can away from him. Bobbi you, Daisy, and May will be tasked with containing him. Bobbi will have the restraints. May will be the distraction, only engaging if absolutely necessary." May nods, no resistance in her eyes. "Daisy, you will contain him so that Bobbi can get the restraints on."

"Sir, what about splitting up into two groups?"

"While it's a solid plan, it leaves us with too few people."

"We aren't taking backup?" Daisy looks around curiously.

"If we need them, there will be backup, however, I'd like to keep this as contained as possible. The boy is probably scared out of his mind."

"Sir, we did intercept a call from the military in the region. They're preparing to attack with extreme prejudice." Bobbi uncharacteristically looks down and away from Coulson's glare.

"And you're just now telling me this?!" Coulson's anger slightly slipping and his voice raising causes Stella to awaken. "Sorry, Stella. It's alright go back to sleep." He rubs her back and she drifts off to sleep once again.

"We found the transmission as we were coming in here. It's new. We can probably beat them there if we leave now." Hunter lies.

"Wheels up in five." May leaves the room.

Coulson repositions Stella and then leaves as well. The rest of the team stand awkwardly for a moment and then decide it best not to anger their commanding officer.


	7. Not As Bad, But Worse

**WARNING: Talk of physical/sexual abuse of a child. Read at your own discretion.**

Coulson sets Stella down in one of the bunks. He leaves the door open and steps just outside. The team slowly make their way into the common room. Daisy walks past Coulson and checks on Stella. Daisy makes sure that Stella is secured and then secures herself in a chair next to the bed. Coulson nods and then walks to the couch to secure himself.

"Strap it down." May's voice comes over the intercom.

The rest of the team find their seats, Bobbi sits across from Coulson. She's decided to try and explain herself.

The plane ascends, they reach altitude and all begin taking off their restraints. Coulson begins to get up, Bobbi places her hand on his arm, "Sir."

"Agent Morse. There's no need." He pats the top of her hand a few times and then finishes standing up.

Bobbi looks up at her commanding officer, "We found out about 20 minutes ago. I'm not sure if we'll get there before them. Hunter lied to protect me. I should have told you right away. I'm sorry."

Coulson sits back down, "Bobbi, I know this isn't your first mission, but you've been off the field for quite some time now. You have to get used to it again. Everything's going to work out. Don't worry."

"How are you so calm?"

"I was mad at first," Bobbi's eyes fall and she begins twirling her fingers as if her batons are in her hands, "but then something happened when I got on the plane."

Bobbi looks up, "What happened?"

"I looked into the face of my daughter. A daughter I didn't even know I had three days ago. I saw how peaceful she was sleeping in my arms. I remembered how when we first got her here she was terrified to be touched, she would scream and thrash around. She nearly broke Fitz's arm, but then something happened and she let me in. She needs me and I know that her brother, my son, he needs me too. I can't be mad at the world for what they've done to my children. I can't be mad at Gerushah for how she treated them. I have to stay strong and be ready to love them unconditionally. I have to show them that the world isn't an angry place where everyone yells and fights. If I'm going to show them that, then I have to change me. Yes, I was mad you didn't tell me, but there really wasn't a good time for you to interject without being rude. So maybe I should be the one to apologize for not letting you give me a full explanation of what you had found. Bobbi, I'm sorry that I yelled at you and that you felt like you deserved it."

Bobbi sits, at a loss for words. She looks at Coulson, her eyes starting to prick with tears, "Sir, that's not necessary. You don't have to apologize."

"And neither do you."

"I don't know if I've said it yet, but congratulations on becoming a dad. I always knew you'd be fantastic at it. She's got your eyes." Bobbi stands up and extends her hand to Coulson.

Coulson grabs her hand and shakes it. He stands up and pulls her into a hug. "It's nice to have you back Bobbi."

"I'm not going anywhere this time."

"Good. Wouldn't want to lose my best agent."

They both start laughing.

XX XX

Daisy unbuckles herself and slips into the bed next to Stella. She unbuckles Stella and then wraps her arm around the girl.

Stella takes a deep breath and her eyes flutter open. She looks up at Daisy, "Where are we?"

"We're on the bus. We're going to go get your brother." Daisy doesn't know how much she should tell Stella about her brother.

Stella looks down and then back up at Daisy, questioning whether she should open up to Daisy and try to understand what happened earlier. "Uh, Daisy?"

"Yeah, Stella?"

"Can I ask you something?"

Daisy looks down at Stella and notices how nervous the girl looks. She remembers feeling nervous when she was younger. She would try to open up to an adult and they would either laugh or shove her into a closet. There weren't many adults that would listen to her and make her feel comfortable. Daisy vowed at that moment to never have Stella second guess asking a question to her. "Stella, you can ask me anything. Whenever you want. I'll try to always give you an honest answer. Sometimes though, I won't be able to tell you everything because I want to keep you safe, but no matter what I want you to know that you can always talk to me. Ok?"

Stella looks at Daisy with admiration, "Ok!" She smiles and hugs Daisy.

Daisy hugs her back, "So what's your question."

Stella twiddles her fingers, "Well, I guess it isn't really a question. Well it is, but it's more like a lot of questions. I don't know how to get it out." She hangs her head in defeat.

Daisy gently lifts Stella's chin so that their eyes meet. "You don't have to be scared anymore Stella. No one here is going to hurt you."

"That's part of my question. Why don't you hurt me? What did I ever do that would make you so nice to me? I've never been safe like this before? Why do you care about me so much? Why…?" Stella stops talking and looks at Daisy with pleading eyes.

"We love you Stella. Not just because you're Coulson's daughter, but because you're you. You are so strong and loving. You have this inner light that makes everyone fall in love with you the moment they lay eyes on you."

Stella takes a deep breath. She doesn't know how to respond to Daisy. Why would someone want to love her if all she's ever done is fight and take orders from an evil dictator? "I don't understand." She hangs her head again.

"Can I tell you a story?"

"I guess."

Daisy takes a deep breath, she's never really told her story to anyone before. In this moment though, she feels like she's safe and that Stella needs to hear her story. "Once upon a time, there was a little baby girl that was taken away from her parents. She was put into the foster system where she was moved a lot. She never got to have parents or siblings, every time she would feel a little bit safe she was moved again. Sometimes she would go to really bad houses where the foster parents would hurt her or make her feel bad about herself. When she was old enough she ran away and she learned how to hack into computers." Stella looks at Daisy. Daisy winks at Stella and continues, "One day the girl hacked into a very important government server. She was taken by the government agency. She had two options she could go to jail or she could help the agency. She decided that she would help the agency so that she could find her parents. One day she did something that caused someone else to get hurt and she thought that she was going to have to leave the agency that she had come to regard as friends, but you know what happened?"

"No. What?"

"They didn't send her away. They were disappointed with her, but they let her stay with them. She went through a lot with everyone on the team and then one day she realized that they weren't just her friends anymore, they were her family. Three days ago she went on a mission with them and she found the cutest little girl."

Stella points to herself, "Me?"

"Yeah, you." Daisy squeezes Stella in a side hug, "Yesterday, when the girl was laying in bed with the really cute girl she felt like her family was almost complete, now she had a little sister."

Stella looked up at Daisy, "Are you the girl? Am I your little sister now?"

"Yeah, Stella, I'm the girl and yes, you are my little sister and I'm your big sister."

Stella smiles and then suddenly understands Daisy's story, "Daisy? You never had a real family? Like me?"

"Technically, no I never had a real family. I've never been adopted. I don't have a mom or a dad or siblings, but you know what; this team, they're my family. They make sure I do what's right and they protect me and I protect them. I'll always protect my family."

"Even if your family does bad things?"

"Stella, you've never done anything bad. You were forced to do things you didn't want to do so that you would survive. If you had a choice would you ever hurt someone else?"

"No. Never!"

"See, Stella, you're good."

"But what if I do something bad?"

"Then we'll talk about it and you'll learn from it, but you'll never be bad. You might slip up here and there, but everyone does. I'm twenty-eight and I still mess up. You know what happens when I mess up?"

"You get in trouble?"

Daisy chuckles, "Well, yeah, I get in trouble, but not the kind of trouble you're thinking about. Usually May or your dad talk to me and sometimes I can't go on a mission or I have to do an extra chore, but they never hurt me. After they talk to me I apologize and they forgive me. That's it, they never hit me, they just hug me and tell me not to do it again. Do you understand?"

Stella shakes her head yes, "Uh, Daisy?"

"Yeah."

"Do the boys ever make you, um, I'm not really sure what it's called. It's when you don't have any clothes on and they hurt you down there."

Daisy takes a sharp breath in, "Oh, Stella, no they never do that. Did the boys that worked for your mom do that to you sometimes?"

Stella feels embarrassed. "Yeah." Her face flushes red and she feels like she's about to cry. She puts her hands over her face.

Daisy puts Stella on her lap and wraps her arms around her. "No one will ever hurt you like that. No one will ever hurt you again Stella. I'll keep you safe."

Stella relaxes in Daisy's arms. A quiet laugh erupts outside the door, both girls are startled. They look at the door expectantly. Coulson knocks and then peaks his head in. "Hey girls, how's it going?"

Stella hides herself in Daisy's arms. Daisy gives Coulson a tentative look, "We were just having some girl talk. How much longer till we get there?"

"We'll be there in another twenty minutes. We're going to have a briefing in five. Stella, do you want a snack before we have our meeting?"

Stella peaks around Daisy's arm, her dad doesn't look mad that she didn't tell him what they just talked about. She sighs with relief. "Yes sir."

Coulson holds out his hand.

Stella looks back at Daisy and then wraps her arms around her neck. "Thank you Daisy."

"You're welcome. Now go get a snack. I'll see you in a little." Daisy pats Stella's back as she hugs her.

Stella releases Daisy and grabs her dad's hand. They walk off to the kitchen.

Daisy sits back and tries to decide how she's going to help Stella.

XX XX

"Do you have surveillance up yet?" Coulson looks at Daisy.

Daisy types on her laptop, "Yes sir. It's on the screen now." With a final click the screen pulls up a small village.

The village has twenty or so small buildings. Some look like they are used as stores, while others look like houses. There are two buildings on fire at the front of the village. People are running around. A S.W.A.T. vehicle pulls up and a dozen officers file out of the door.

"Crap." Bobbi looks at the screen and pulls out her batons. She starts pacing back and forth while twirling her batons.

"Mack and Hunter, you've got the S.W.A.T. team. FitzSimmons, you'll get the civilians to safety. Bobbi, May, and I will find my son. Daisy you'll stay here and look after Stella."

"But.." Daisy looks at Coulson to argue her case. She stops as she sees the flick of anger and determination in his eyes. She knows he's not going to change his mind. She takes a breath, "Yes, sir."

"We land in 10. Buckle up." May walks past Daisy and heads to the cockpit.

Everyone finds a seat and buckles up.


End file.
